Wiil you be disappointed if we finish outside the top 2???

[ossieram]

Don't get me wrong, I'd love us to walk the league and be promoted with 10 games to go, but I don't expect it and won't be upset if it doesn't happen or if we don't even make the play offs. 

And all this talk of the good signings and quality players! How do we know until they play together that they are quality or can perform as a unit or even perform at this level anymore?

[Alty_Ram]

Nope, not even remotely disappointed. We have had a rush of players coming in but they are largely just replacing losses from a threadbare squad. I'm just looking to see a competitive side operating on a level playing field with no effing points deductions. Would be nice to be in the mix at the end but I'll view that as bonus territory.

[Ram-Alf]

Nope, Where's the fun in winning the League, Play Off Final...40k Rams Fans on the lash in the big smoke, Win 8-0 then back on the lash for the rest of the day/night, Spend some loot in Soho, Get ripped off by those young ladies that sit on your lap and you pay £200 for a bottle of fizzy pop, Realise I've maxed out my credit card, Find a Trumpet in the toilets, Go outside to do a bit of busking, Make a few bob, Bump into Adele who says you play a good tune do you fancy being part of my backing group, Travel the world, Meet a beautiful MILF millionaires, Get married, Star in a Hollywood Blockbuster where A poor man makes good and buys his local soccer team, Money is rolling in I become a Billionaire, I buy DCFC, STs are free to all, DCFC sign all the best players in the world, We become Premier league champions, Win the European Cup...Then I wake up with a huge hangover in the gutter it was all a dream, As I look down I see yesterdays headlines...DCFC win the play off final...8-0

COYFRs ?

 

[StaffsRam]

I’ll be disappointed if we miss the top six, but not the top two. Considering there’s also Sheff Wed, Ipswich and a few others I don’t think there’s much between any of us, however those two have recent L1 experience which we don’t.

Top half is satisfactory. Top 6 is a good season. Top 2 would be a very nice bonus.

[Van der MoodHoover]

1 hour ago, i-Ram said:

For all the faff above, let’s face it some 50% of this forum are going to be disappointed if we are not in the top 2 by the end of August. Settling in time, Time to gel. My arse.

Haemorrhoids playing up? ?

[LeedsCityRam]

Emphatically no. And I totally disagree with the suggestion that experienced players don't need time to bed in - we've signed 10 new players & irrespective of ability, form or experience, it will take time to build up those partnerships on the pitch. Training is all well & good but its only in the white heat of competitive games that players learn what to expect from their teammates.

I don't really have any expectations - certainly don't feel this is a squad on paper that should be finishing bottom 6 but am fully prepared for a slow start because of the time needed for the team to settle down & for Rosenior to get to the pitch of managing Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday etc. I am hoping for top 6 & I suspect we might be competing for 6th by next March/April but I certainly won't be disappointed if that isn't the case. So long as the team improves during the season & we start building the foundations i.e. young players getting lots of game time, settled style of play, I'll be happy.

As others have alluded to, this division will be far tougher than most of us realise. Make no mistake, we are THE team to beat this year. Sheffield Wednesday can chirp all they like about how big they are but the reality is they have spent a significant time in the third tier over the last 15 years, they are a perennial face down here. Meanwhile we've been mixing it with teams who are now in the Premier League, we've got some impressive names for this level & we clearly have the best ground in the division. As a squad, that will take some getting used to & there will be tough days both at PP & away from home to take on the chin. We need to show patience & hold off judging the team until after Christmas. 2 year project for me, be delighted if we nail it in one season.

[24Charlie]

My concern is how to beat the poohouse.

We have never showed any inclination of being able to defeat the Championships dross with any consistency for some years now. League 1 is packed full of such teams. We have regularly beaten top six sides but not those who come to disrupt.

Our side again seems to be full of players who can play the beautiful game but all it takes is 11 fit guys harassing around and we won't be able to get our game going.

I have seen nothing so far in the signings that we have made that we have a plan B. We need a big, route 1, striker or  I think we'll struggle and Liam will be sacked by Christmas. .

[Shang]

Anyone who expects us to walk League 1 and get promotion in the first season are absolutely delusional. We've lost the majority of our players and all the previous hard work, fighters and relationships we had on the pitch last year is gone.

All I want is one stable year of decent football with no off pitch controversy and a visible foundation we can build off of. I don't care if we're 18th next season, just want to it all to settle down.

Set your expectations low, and if we do happen to get promoted it'd be even more rewarding.

[1of4]

With what we've been through over the last few years. I'll be happy with mid-table mediocrity and we're not involved in a struggle to avoid relegation. Anything resembling a promotion push would be a bonus.

[Vulcanboy]

Two months or so ago. It was touch & go whether we had a team to watch in PP. We are basically starting again (not quite from scratch) We don't know how all these new players will gel, how injuries will pan out, even dare I say it, how good a manager Rosenior turns out to be. After all the s***e we've been through, it'll just be refreshing to turn up to PP, with no cloud hanging over us. To be just, more or less back to "normal" moaning, groaning, cheering, jumping out of the seat with joy. 

Let's just embrace it, & enjoy it ?

[Chester40]

The players who have come in don't look to me like players happy to toil away in the bottom reaches of League 1.

Regardless of what happens I will be happy to have a club; that goes without saying. But we can also put that aside and be honest without ranting and raving...we competed in the Championship whilst carrying a huge points deduction and I think the team may actually be better that runs out for the first day of the season.

Top half would be my minimum expectation for an 'ok' season.

Challenging and in the mix for the play offs would be about right/decent. 

Top 6 would be a good season.

Anything more would be excellent. 

[Ram a lamb a ding dong]

Collins may be the key to everything. We haven't had a battering ram since Stevie H and he did wonders. 

The big difference between 1991/2 (and the collection of expensive kids bought on-masse) and now is experience. Most of the newbies will slip straight in. Look how the likes of Curtis, Jagielka and CKR slotted straight In previously.

Yes there are a lot more to pull together but I am expecting something great this season. 

[RIMBAUD]

7 minutes ago, Chester40 said:

The players who have come in don't look to me like players happy to toil away in the bottom reaches of League 1.

Regardless of what happens I will be happy to have a club; that goes without saying. But we can also put that aside and be honest without ranting and raving...we competed in the Championship whilst carrying a huge points deduction and I think the team may actually be better that runs out for the first day of the season.

Top half would be my minimum expectation for an 'ok' season.

Challenging and in the mix for the play offs would be about right/decent. 

Top 6 would be a good season.

Anything more would be excellent. 

I can get on board with this. A competitive team that has a go both home and away will be one that makes me happy. 

[duncanjwitham]

I think it depends more on the "how we get there" than the actual destination.  If we start off struggling to gel, but gradually get a style of play in place, and then go on a run but don't quite make it, then fine.  There's something to build on and we go again next year.  If in 6 months time we're still signing random players, switching formation every week, changing managers etc then I'm going to be worried. I want to see signs that we have a plan, an identity etc, from both the owner and the manager, and that we're going to follow through on that plan, even if it takes a while to get there.

[i-Ram]

58 minutes ago, Van der MoodHoover said:

Haemorrhoids playing up? ?

I was waiting for some pain in the arse to pile in. 

[RodleyRam]

I think we have to be realistic about where we are. Whilst the signings so far are astute and exciting, we have a lot of new players and little time to gel. This is a tough league, a heavy schedule and we will be seen as the team everyone wants to beat. We are still short of at least 5 players, so there will be further 'disruption' to the squad as signings are made and people settle in. It'll be difficult to hit the ground running and we could easily see some disappointing results in the first 10 games, if we are top 10 at that point, I'd be content.

We have a bright, talented but inexperienced manager, who will undoubtedly learn some harsh lessons along the way.

Outside of the playing squad, we will be overhauling the structure of the club and trying to rebuild in a coherent way.

None of that will happen over night, so I'm managing my expectations. At this point, I would expect a top 10 finish and hope for a play off spot. I don't think top 2 is realistic and we should be very careful not to create unnecessary pressure.

We as fans have a huge role to play next season in showing our unconditional support, you can see how important that is for the players.

[Ian Buxton's Bat]

Will I be disappointed if we don't make top 2? No.

Will I be surprised if we do make top 2? No.

Really looking forward to this season.

[Alty_Ram]

I think there is a natural momentum to these things. This team is largely new and many did not experience the 'all-for-one' spirit of last year so it is far from certain how this will pan out. The manager is also new (albeit familiar) but if we start positively then a season can take on a life of its own and winning becomes a habit. The real challenge (as others have mentioned) will be if we have a sticky start. Can Rosenior in his first senior appointment keep the players on board with the plan.

There have been so many changes from last year that we are in unknown territory but all we can do as fans is to try and offer the same unflinching support but in so doing still let them know that we expect to see the recent 'fight to the end' spirit. Togetherness is going to be vital because we are highly unlikely to blow this league away whatever some wild optimists feel and that collective spirit between players and fans can be worth a hell of a lot of points. I have watched a lot of Derby sides down the years but rarely have I seen the sheer bloody-mindedness of that late rally against Birmingham last season. It would have been so easy for that to peter out to 0-2 defeat but everyone kept going right 'til the end. As much as any incoming player, a decent slice of that attitude again will be as important as anything else.

[Animal is a Ram]

Top half.

We're starting from scratch, and the while the signings so far have been impressive, we still don't have an awful lot of depth up front.

(please, don't take this as a complaint, I'm still very happy with the progress so far)

We'll also be a huge target for teams, in spite of what's happened.

[Comrade 86]

Honestly, I'm still grinning ear to ear that My Clowes stepped in and saved the club. We've got some good signings sorted, a few contracts that needed extending done, the sun is shining and it's the weekend.

Top two always the dream, of course, but coming from where we are, even the play-offs would be a minor miracle.That said, I have bet us to go up, but that's mainly because I'm a massive, happy-clapping t***.